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Tuesday, May 30, 2017

Patissier Hiro Yamamoto : Cakes with a Flower

Feminized. That's the unique style of the cakes here. Every single cake is adorned with an edible flower and it's hard to imagine that they were produced by a burly chef with a pot belly. As with most patisseries here, the cakes are rooted in French classics but presented in a much colorful manner that attracts attention instantly.

Chef Hiro Yamamoto probably can be counted as one of the most experienced Japanese pastry veterans in Tokyo with many international awards including the prestigious e prestigious Meilleur Ouvrier de France, the highest honour a professional in an individual trade can achieve, bestowed by the President of France himself. You can spot that big trophy and certificate in the shop.

The Saint Honore Pistache (535 yen) is one with the most amount of cream I've ever seen and yet it wasn't overly rich at all. Michel (540 yen) is another pistachio mousse with strawberry mousse inside and I would characterize this as a very demure, soft spoken lady. Fromage Cru (532 yen) was as light as clouds but I still prefer the flavor of the Fromage from Le Coint Vert. The Strawberry Tart draw parallels to a flamboyant dancer hailing from Moulin Rouge Cabaret. We were told to pour the Passionfruit sauce onto the Duo (535 yen), which evokes a tropical beach feel with the cherry fresh oranges and two types of cheesecake. The only item that I would strongly discourage is overly sweet The Agnes (540 yen), an Anise spiced Milk Chocolate Mousse with caramelized pecan nuts and hazelnut dacquoise.

The red croissant was labeled as plain croissant but we learnt from the staff that the unique red hue is a result of raspberry syrup. The texture isn't flaky at room temperature but still delicious and just mildly sweet. If not for the 40 plus min traveling time by train from Shinjuku, I can foresee myself coming here over and over again.